When you are
considering different types of leadership training, and you wonder what
leadership qualities to emphasize, remember Mandela.
1. Mandela
never lost his dignity. He remained uniquely himself. We all know leaders who
throw themselves away like obsequious office hunters. Even though he went to
jail for 27 years, he never compromised his principles. He never gave up on
others’ superior potential. He never dismissed people as hopeless. He clung to
the possibility that one day, even his captors would grow and understand.
2. Mandela
surveyed his situation from a fresh perspective. Rather than banging his head
against his opponents, he strived for unity and for each individual to feel a
member of the whole.
3.
Detachment. Those that came to him he accepted, those that did not come, he
allowed to go their own way. With this, the people around him could express
their opinions openly. He did not have to woo people. By cultivating his own
inner strength (something necessary for anyone who is the center of a group)
those who were aligned with him came of their own accord.
Outwardly,
Mandela was powerless. New leaders often feel powerless. Surprisingly, that
could be a good thing.
Research
done at Harvard and Duke found that being “powerful” might reduce your team’s
ability to perform. Yes. A study done by Francesca Gino of Harvard and Richard
Larrick of Duke, found that teams with a leader who had less power
out-performed teams with a dominant leader. Even teams with no formal leader
did better.
Many people
who step up and say YES to a leadership role complain that they don’t have
enough power to make an impact. Why not take advantage of that? According to
Gino and Larrick, “Feelings of power produce a tendency to devalue the
perspectives, opinions, and contributions of others.”
The next
time you are feeling powerless, remember Nelson Mandela and turn the situation
to your advantage with Gino and Larrick’s advice:
1. Improve
communication by promoting equal participation.
2. Change
the hierarchical structure to engage all members of the team.
Mandela knew
the power of unity. History remembers him for attempting to bring the black and
white races together with the unlikely tool of rugby and the magical moment
when white South Africans took a man that they once considered a terrorist into
their hearts. A crowd of 65,000 mostly white rugby fans cheered him for wearing
a jersey that once was a symbol of oppression. It became even better two hours
later, when South Africa beat New Zealand and won the tournament.
Leadership
training modules will be more successful if you include the leadership training
meaning. Why do attendees want to attend? Why do they care? Why do you want
them to learn what you are teaching?
Mandela knew
what he wanted, and more importantly, why. Because he knew why, he was willing
to wait. He was able to endure the dangling. He could use the waiting time to
make small, persistent, focused efforts. He could use gentle persuasion and, at
the same time, be firm and confident.
Leadership
training modules will be more successful when they include exercises that help
people not only learn what to do, but why. The following questions are an
example:
When I’m at
cross-purposes with others, can this gap be closed without compromising my
integrity? Or theirs?
Are we actually opponents? Or just two people
with individual needs?
Is there
common ground?
Must there
be one winner and one loser?
Could we
become allies and find a solution that permits two winners?
Nelson
Mandela was a Godsend to his people. His virtues and leadership qualities make
him a standard to be followed. – Shar McBee